1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an agitator and a melting furnace with an agitator.
2. Background Art
Conventionally, among melting furnaces for melting, for example, aluminum for the purpose of recycling, aluminum melting furnaces with agitators can be classified into those of a mechanical type, which insert a rotational body into a furnace in order to directly agitate aluminum, those of a low-pressure type, which use a negative pressure pump to suck up melt to agitate it, and those of an electromagnetic type which generate a shifting magnetic field by causing a three-phase alternating current to flow through a fixed electrode and electromagnetically agitate aluminum based on the generated magnetic field.
The aforementioned mechanical-type furnaces do not have a sufficient durability since the rotational body is used to directly agitate a high-temperature melt. Furthermore, there is a problem in that the operation and the maintenance thereof are complicated. Low-pressure type furnaces are not widely used since the operability thereof is not so good. Electromagnetic-type furnaces require a high current, thereby increasing power consumption, resulting in high running costs. Furthermore, since the cooling of coils thereof requires great care, the cost of the entire equipment is inevitably increased, which hinders the widespread use thereof.